"Really?" She was incredulous. "I've been an Episcopalian since I was eighteen and I've never seen anything like it. How fascinating!"
Our Maronite pastor has purchased a Methodist-Episcopal Church, that is 150 years old. It was boarded up in the 70s, I suppose at the time the two separated and went their own ways. Over the years, various commercial enterprises approached the owners of the property who refused to sell it to them. They wanted the church to continue as a church.
The first thing we noticed was the absence of a center aisle. The pipe organ occupied center stage, with the organ's console facing it, back to the preacher.
In renovating the original worship space, our Maronite pastor plans to retain the pipe organ in its place while resituating the organ's console to the side. Though modifications will be required to render the worship space in conformity with Catholic doctrine, the pastor has shown great respect for the original design of the church.
That leaves the altar facing West, even though the church itself faces East. For centuries, all catholic churches were constructed with the altar facing East. Obviously, in times of church restoration, there is no way to physically turn the church around.
"When the altar is facing the east, then the whole church is worshiping together as opposed to a performance where the actors are on stage, facing an audience who is not participating."
This makes no sense to me. Does the author think that if the celebrant faces the congregation during the service, the congregation does not participate? Not in our parish. The congregation sings the hymns, the psalm, the Sanctus, the Sursum Corda responses, the Agnus Dei, and the Memorial Acclamation. Laity read the Old and New Testament lessons and the Prayers for the People intercessions. Plus the various prayers. This hardly seems like "an audience who is not participating", and I don't see how the altar facing us instead of away from us makes it so.
As for facing the East, the Orthodox continue to do it because it is a symbolic direction of God, Who is Light (uncreated of course), and Life, without Whom we are in the spiritual darkness and death.
That anyone would take offense at the priest leading his flock symbolically facing the Light of God that illuminates us unto Him, only shows the degree of decay that is prevelant in the West. For it is not for us that we go to church, but (hopefully) to worship God.
Tell that to the people who have created Christmas that is all about Santa Claus and profit-mnaking and not about the One Whose Birthday we celebrate. The distortion of Christmas in the West is reflective of the spiritual decay of the West, while it basks in perishable and passing wealth.
It is indeed sad when the people prefer that the priest turn his back on God so that they can be entertained.
Good discussion. BTTT